1. ANNUAL GIVING CAMPAIGN COMMUNITY KICK-OFF
THE Y. FOR A BETTER US™
ANNUAL GIVING CAMPAIGN COMMUNITY KICK-OFF

2. ACTIVITY: Big Picture Deck Speed Dating
Objective: Share your passion about the Y while meeting new people
Directions:
Pick a BPD card on the table that best illustrates why you are passionate about the Y. You have 15 minutes to introduce yourself and share your passion about the Y with 3 new people and listen to their passions

3. WHY DO WE RAISE FUNDS? Youth Development
15.1 million children are unsupervised after school
One out of two children entering Kindergarten is not prepared for school
Nearly one third of public high school students fail to graduate
Only about half of Black, Hispanic and American Indian youth graduate high school
Healthy Living
One third of Americans are obese
26 million Americans have Type 2 diabetes
What role does fundraising play at the Y?
More than ever our communities need the Y. These are some eye-opening national statistics that relate to the Y’s three areas of focus:
The foundation for YMCA fundraising is the Annual Giving Campaign. The Campaign helps strengthen the philanthropic culture of the Y.
AGC also:
Strengthens individuals and families in spirit, mind and body.
Strengthens the community through greater program impact
Strengthen the Y movement through increased ownership, leadership development and sense of community
Provides funding to maintain and expand mission-aligned programs that require subsidy
Provides funds to deliver on the YMCA mission-based promise to assist those who cant’ afford membership or program fees
Social Responsibility
42% of children live in low-income families

4. GOALS BY BRANCH BRANCH 2019 GOAL 2019 RAISED
Alexander County $38,000 $5,933
Camp Hanes $308,000 $69,334
Youth Development $71,000 $21,194
Davie $100,000 $24,298
Fulton $138,000 $35,437
Jerry Long $368,000 $58,816
Kernersville $191,000 $61,839
Robinhood Road $205,000 $57,467
Statesville $140,000 $15,629
Stokes $126,000 $32,666
Wilkes $218,000 $68,213
William G. White Jr./IQ $382,000 $69,605
Winston Lake $62,000 $9,591
Yadkin $130,000 $7,404
Association $260,000 $66,778
Total $2,730,000 $604,204

5. 2019 AGC FOCUS & GOALS FOCUS GOALS Donor Retention $2.73 million
Relationship, Engagement, Stewardship
Storyteller Recruitment & Training
Division of Storytellers
Recurring/Monthly Giving
$2.73 million
8,500 donors
1,750 first-time donors
975 CRT donors
100% Board giving
Average gift $500
Donor retention is crucial to a successful Annual Giving Campaign.
It is much easier to retain a current donor than to bring in a new donor.
83% of our overall dollars come from 24% of our donors at $250 and up. Focus your efforts there!
Focus efforts on first-time donors to get them to second year gift (this will increase their overall giving by as much as 40% over time).
Relationship, Engagement, Stewardship
Think of your relationship with your donors as a cycle;
donors do NOT want to be contacted only when being asked to make a gift/pledge.
Consider creative ways to build your relationship with donors.
Engage donors year-round and let them know the IMPACT of their gift.
THANK DONORS often and promptly.
New donors should be contacted within 30 days of their pledge
(Phone calls are best, hand-written notes are second best and s are not preferred.
5 Divisions of Storytellers
Divide storytellers into 5 divisions for focus based off of their talents/strengths:
Staff
Board
CRTs
$250-$999 (this will be the majority of giving)
$250 and under (focus recurring giving)
Recurring Giving
Recurring giving is the easiest way to provide consistent and steady support for the Y.
Donors can provide monthly giving via credit card, electronic funds transfer, to make it easy
An easy way to encourage donors to upgrade their gift
Gift increase seems more manageable when considering paying it over an extended period of time.
$1,000 now seems like a lot; $85 a month seems possible
Specific upgrade strategies:
$100 donor in the past, ask for $10-$15 a month; increases their giving by $20-$80

6. STEPS IN THE GIFT CYCLE Identification of Prospects
Cultivate and Involve
Ask for Support
Acknowledgement/Stewardship
Renewal
Identify Prospects
Cultivate & Involve
Ask for Support
Thank Donor
Renew

7. TIME AND ENERGY INVOLVED IN EACH STEP

8. THE ART OF “THE ASK”
Know your role, your purpose and your goal-you are an ambassador of the Y.
Know our cause (Youth Development, Healthy Living, Social Responsibility).
Know the prospect-what is their link to the Y or to community issues that Y programs address?
Make the appointment-offer several times and places; should you take a staff member with you?
Tell the story and how they can be involved.
Relate you own story; your enthusiasm will be contagious.
Ask the prospect about what he/she sees as community issues
Talk about Y programs designed to address these issues
Make sure you have already made your gift.

9. THE ART OF “THE ASK” Know what to ask for and why
Discussion—questions and answers
Wait for response
Close
Acknowledge the gift, thank the donor, confirm details and thank the donor for the opportunity to share Y stories
If more time is needed to make a decision, know when to follow-up; thank the prospect for the opportunity to share Y stories
Don’t get discouraged
All visits are successful!
Send the pledge card to the Y right away.

10. THE PLEDGE CARD
CHECK:
Name/contact info – if blank, fill out with as much info as possible; if pre-printed, confirm contact info including spouse (if applicable), best phone and .
Storyteller Name- add the solicitor information to ensure that this is documented in the gift record and pulled relationship continues to be strengthened and stewarded by the appropriate person.
Heritage Club- check this box if a donor is interested in learning more about
Pledge amount – be sure to include employee match if their company matches!
Payment Preference – don’t forget to indicate if donor prefers to pay now or pay later. This area is especially important as it determines the billing schedule (or lack of one) for the life of the pledge.
Notes – use this section to include any information you learn about the donor or keep track of communication (you can also use the back for notes!)

11. ACTIVITY: ROLE PLAY Directions:
Each person in your group will play each role. Between each of you, decide what role you will play. Then conduct the role play.
Roles:
One person is the solicitor that will ask for the gift.
One person is the donor/potential donor.
*Take the next 15 minutes to role play and switch roles.

12. ROLE PLAY
Scenario A:
You have an active member in your facility that and has helped to support many charities in your community, but has never given to the Y. Knowing that you probably only have 3-5 minutes of their time and attention, you have the opportunity to share and educate this potential donor on the good and important work of the Y.
Scenario B:
You have a loyal donor that has been giving to the Y for 5 years at the same giving level ($100). Through conversations and getting to know your donor, you have identified they are a retired educator from your community school system. Your board has decided to increase the amount of students served by 20, through the Bright Beginnings program. Make a specific ask of this donor to help achieve this goal.

13. RESOURCES Volunteer Guide
Annual Giving Campaign Website (
Videos Stories (new for 2019 and past years)
AGC Brochure
Call Scripts
Much more!
Y-Exchange
Other branches
Staff
Weekly Updates from AGC Chair
AGC Marketing in branch
Y social media pages
YOUR passion for the Y
Volunteer guide: Folder with booklet including facts and figures about our Y, answers to FAQs, list of companies that match giving, and workbook area to keep track of your prospects, asks made and goals!
Y-Exchange:

14. QUESTIONS. What did you learn new today
QUESTIONS? What did you learn new today? How will you use what you learned back at your branch? 14

15. THANK YOU
Annual Giving Campaign
YMCA OF Northwest North Carolina 15